The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1887-07-21
CPeOSOte.

Col. w. p. Canaday, of North Caro-
lima, sergeant-at arms of the United
States senate, besides being politician.
knows great deal about creOsOte and
how it is made. The colonel is a tall,
fine-lOoking man, us straight as a pine
tree of his state, and full of vim and
energy. He gave a reporter some,
facts about creosote the other day at
the Fifth Avenue hotel. He said:
''Creosoting wood that hSs to be used.
in damp places is the only method to
preserve it from the decaying effects
of water and the insidious attacks of
the teredo worm. Creosote is general
name applied to the products obtained
from the destructive distillatiOn of
wood, coal, and other carbonaceous
fuels after the temperature has risen
above 200 or 800 degrees Fahrenheit.
The oil thus obtained is termed creosote
oil and is an excellent preservative of
wood. The philosophy of its anti
septic and preservative qualities is
simple. The oil chokes up the pores
of the wood, making it solid and pre-
venting the further entrance of air,
moisture or life. No germinal life
can exist in wood thoroughly creosoted,
and the fatal teredO worm dies from
the effects of the oil. You see
the oil contains insoluble tar
acids, not only antiseptic in their
nature, but also possess the power of
cOagulating the albuminous or fermeut-
ing elements of green, sappy, or un-
seasoned wood How is creosote made
from pine?-Well, heavily-resinedf fatty
pine wood, subjected to heat of 800
to 760 degrees Fahrenheit within closed
iron cylinders, yields by distillation
and condensation an excellent wood
creosote oil, suitable for the preserva-
tion of wood. When this oil is ana
lyzed it is found to contain about per
cent. of tar acids, about y per cent.
of the lighter oils, and at least so per
cent. of the heavier oils, insOluble in
either fresh, brackish, or salt water.
Experience shows that preservation of
timber is mainly due to those creOsote
oils which require over 400 degrees
Fahrenheit for their volatilization,
and that the pure creosote, with less tar
acids and with less light oils, gives the
best results. CreOsote oil is forced in
to wood by means of hydraulic press
ure. The improvements made upon
the charring processes are very great.
There is carboniZed process which
takes ordinary open grained pine
timber and subjects it to dry, radiant
heat, within suitable cylindrical sur
faces, in such a manner as to drive out
of the timber most of the sap and album
inOus matter, drying the inside of the
timber, charring its outside and leav-
ing the wood with its pores wide open
and in condition to be completely filled
with the oil. This process does not
render the timber brittle. How much
oil is required? Sawed lumber only
requires eight pounds per cubic foot.
In logs used for piling twelve pounds
of creosote oil per cubic foot is all that
is necessary for its preservation.
During the manufacture of creosote
oil pyroligneous acid is condensed
i'm the still. The acid in its
crude and undiluted state is an ex-
cellent disinfectant. The progress
made in creosoting timber within the
past few years has been SO great it
would be unsafe to predict to what ex-
tent it will be carried. Wood will be
be made more lasting than any build
ing material. "-Ne10 York Mail and
ErDre$S.